norbis and d



UNITED sTATEs PATENT oEEIoE.

I. H. NORRIS AND D. FLANDERS, OF PARISHVILLE, NEW YORK.

DESK.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 8,530, dated November 18, 1851.

To all whom t may concern Be it known that we, I. H. NoRRls and DAVID FLANDERS, of Parishville, in the county of St. Lawrence and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Desks Suitable for Bookkeepersand others; and we do hereby declare that thefollowing is a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, in which- Figure l, is a front View of a desk with our improvements attached. Fig. 2, is a transverse section taken through the line O, O, Fig. l. Fig. 3, is a top view with the top pieces or boxes removed. Fig. t, is a detached perspective view,`on a reduced scale, of one of the top pieces or boxes marked D.

The same letters of reference denote similar parts in each of the several gures.

The nature of our invention consists in constructing the top of the desk in two parts or pieces, each of which,` situated side by side, is lowered and raised at pleasure, by appropriate mechanical devices therefor, so that a proper level is easily obtained for either side of rthe book; and further, in the employment of a jointed leaf or leaves in the front of the desk which when bent down or in, admit of the book being brought ,forward and when raised up or out, form a. rest for the hand.

To enable others, skilled in the art, to make and use our invent-ion we will proceed minutely to describe it.

A, A, A, is the frame of the desk, having chambers B, C, at the top separated, or formed fromone chamber into two, by the partition a, running transversely of the desk.

D, E, are boxes or pieces, whose sides fit and are guided in the chambers B, C; they are made open at their bottom, but closed above, by fiat inclined covers, which, form the writ-ing top of the desk; the boxes D, E, rest near either corner, upon double levers b, b, c, c, which are sustained on fulcrum bars CZ, (l, (Z, d, secured to framings e,e,o, e, and which are operated at their apex, or inner end by nuts or boxes f, f, raised and lowered by the vertical screws g, g, that receive their mot-ion through bevel wheels h, h, operated by similar wheels z', z', worked through shafts 7c, 7c, by the handle Zl.

F is a leaf hinged along the front of the desk by yhinges m, m, and having hinged to it atl its bottom end by hinges n, n, a further leaf G, that may be slid or shut into the chambers B, C, as represented by black lines in the drawings, or may occupy the position shown by red lines Fig. 2, when turned up or out, to form an extension, as it were of the surface of the book open on the desk, constituting thereby a rest for the hand, the hinges by their attachment serving to admit of this altered position, and the triangular hinged support H, hooking inV a, suitable catch, answering to hold up the leaf G, when fully extended to the position shown in red lines, the support H, shutting into a recess made in the leaf G, (as seen in Fig. 3) when it is required to close the leaves as represented by black lines; or the leaf Gr may be held up or supported in any other suitable way than through the triangular piece H.

I is a drawer fitted to the desk and J a silde or table which draws outward and may serve for holding and noting indices upon.

The advantages of these improvements in bookkeeping are obvious, for, by having the top of the desk divided as shown, and such divisions made separately movable as described, the inequality in thickness of the sides of the book with one another, as caused by writing more or less from the center pages, may be obviated and an even surface of the two sides produced, by lowering the one box or piece on which is situated the thickest portion of the book (say the box or divison E) or raising the other top piece (say the box D), on which lies the thinnest side of the book; and when required for writing at the center' of the'book, both boxes D, E, may be brought on the same level, or any desired given to the top of the desk; these movements of the top being performed by simply turning either shaft lo, la, operating the boxes or pieces D, E, as described, or any other suitable arrangement of machinery for producing a similar effect may be adopted. Thus the usual blocks for adjusting the heights, with their attendant inconveniences, such as liability to move and necessity of change, are altogether dispensed with, and where writing on large and heavy books, much time and labor will be saved.

Further by the employment of the folding leaves F, G, made to occupy the positions shown and described, an extension equivalent to book surface is aorded When Writing at the bottom of the page, by simply drawing` and securing the leaves F, G, up or out as represented in red lines Fig. 2, the leaf G thus serving as a rest for the hand and rendering unnecessary the usual blocks With their attendant unfirmness and variable thicknesses; also when Writing at the top of the page or book, the leaves F, G, by being turned down or into the position shown by black lines, admit of the book being drawn slightly over the front of the desk, thereby giving increased freedom to the Writer.

The slide J, which answers the purpose of a table Without the inconvenience, enables the bookkeeper Without going from his desk, to note the pages When recording in his index With great convenience and despatch.

.A desk constructed as described Will be found generally a great saving of time and labor.

What We claim as our invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. Forming the deskhtop in boXes, parts or pieces D, E, each of which may be separately raised or lowered as required, through appropriate mechanical devices substantially in the manner and for the purposes shown and set forth.

2. The employment of hinged double leaves F, G, in the front of the desk, the same When extended forming a rest for the hand and being made capable of closing down or in, essentially as described.

ISAAC H. NORRIS. DAVID FLANDERS.

Witnesses:

CALEB VELGH, WM. E. HUBBARD. 

